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The new Nintendo Museum in Kyoto opens on October 2nd, 2024, but you can’t just turn up and visit right now—you’ll need to organise tickets in advance. Here’s how.
If you plan to add the Nintendo Museum to your Japan trip plans, forget just showing up on the day and getting in. Tickets must be booked in advance, and it seems that the team behind the museum expects things to be so hectic in the first few months that tickets are first being given out via a lottery. So, here’s how you enter.
Image via Nintendo Corporation Press Release
How to Enter the Nintendo Museum Ticket Lottery
The lottery opens three months before the date you want to visit—and October and November dates are open now.
If you want to enter, first register for a free Nintendo account via the link on the Nintendo Museum ticket website and then apply for the time and date you’d like to visit the museum.
You can pick up to three possible dates and times, and they give you a clue as to how many other people are in the draw when you go to book – so, get strategic and try for quieter times. Not surprisingly, the weekend times are busier than those in the week. It’s open 10 am to 6 pm but closed on a Tuesday.
The Lottery is drawn on the 1st of the month, and winners will be notified by email.
Paying for Tickets If You Win
Because of the lottery system, you don’t pay for your tickets until they are confirmed. If you win, you’ll be notified by email on the 1st of the month, and then you’ll have until 11.59 pm Japanese time on the 7th to pay for your ticket.
Entry costs 3300 yen for adults, 2200 yen for children aged 12-17 and 1100 yen for those aged 6-11. Those who are younger get in free.
Like many Japanese websites, you must use a credit card that supports the 3D-secure security system to pay. Right now, it’s too early to know about any common conflicts with foreign cards, but Japanese websites often don’t like foreign Visa cards, so you might want to try using another card if you have one to reduce the chance of payment getting rejected.
Getting Tickets After the Draw
If there are any tickets left after the lottery is drawn, they will go on sale in the middle of the month after the draw. Even with these, you cannot book tickets on the day; the last day you can buy them is the day before you want to attend.
So, in other words…
You want to go to the museum on Dec 15th.
The first date you can apply for the lottery draw is September 15th—the lottery will be drawn on October 1st.
If you didn’t enter the draw or didn’t win, you can check for public tickets around October 15th and up until December 14th.
Image via Nintendo Corporation Press Release
Important Notes
To apply for tickets, you need a Nintendo account. The ticket website has a link to set this up. Keep a note of your password, as you’ll need it if you get the tickets.
They need your phone number, and apparently, you will need to respond to a message using that phone number to confirm your identity. So, make sure you’ll have access to the phone number you supply when the draw takes place. You can’t change the number once you’ve registered, and only one application per phone number is allowed.
You won’t get your actual ticket straight away. Instead, you’ll get a confirmation, and the QR code that lets you into the museum will be issued at 2 pm the day before your visit.
Tickets are for named individuals, and you must have an ID in that name when you attend. For foreign visitors, this must be your passport (which you should have on you anyway in Japan). It expressly states that they won’t take any other foreign ID, and that applies to kids, too.
What’s Going to Be in the Museum
Now, if the fact that a Nintendo Museum is about to open in Kyoto is news to you, here’s what we know so far.
It’s a history of Nintendo, from their first product— a game of cards stamped with flowers called Hanafudu—to all the different machines and games they’ve launched in their history.
The museum aims to be interactive, and of course, there will be games for you to play. You play these using interactive coins, and you’ll get ten of them with your ticket. They do say this isn’t enough to do everything, but whether you can buy additional coins is unclear – the website says you can’t purchase additional coins ‘alone’, but I’m not totally sure what alone means!
Image via Nintendo Corporation Press Release
Another question I can’t answer yet is how much of the museum is in English. I’ll update you if I win the ticket lottery and get to go! It’s a good sign that the website has clear English instructions though.
There will also be a burger joint on the premises, which promises you can make over 270,000 different burger combinations. My maths isn’t good enough to work out how many toppings that means are on the menu. There are also no pictures yet, but I’m very much hoping there’s at least some theming on the buns; otherwise, they’re missing a trick! They will offer vegetarian options.
Lastly, you didn’t think they would pass up the chance to have a shop, did you? You can buy Nintendo-themed merchandise, including some that are exclusive to the museum.
Is It Accessible?
The museum is generally wheelchair accessible, with lifts to the upper levels and barrier-free restrooms. However, some interactive exhibits won’t be playable in a wheelchair.
They offer discounted tickets to registered disabled people, but you must show official proof of disability. As with so many of the attractions, they only explain clearly what this means for those living in Japan, and it’s not yet known if things like doctor letters will be accepted.
How to Get to The Nintendo Museum
The museum isn’t in Kyoto’s centre; it’s located near Uji, slightly south of Kyoto. In its former life, the building was the old Nintendo factory.
Three different train lines can take you to the museum from Kyoto in about half an hour. Depending on which line you take, you’ll get off at either Kintetsu Ogura Station or JR Ogura Station.
It’s easy to combine with a day trip to Uji or tag onto a trip to Fushimi Inari (using Inari station).
It’s also easy to reach the museum from Nara. It takes just 44 minutes from Nara Station on the JR Nara line to JR Ogura Station.
If you want to visit from Osaka, it will take at least 80 minutes and a few changes to get here. The best route will depend on where you stay in Osaka, so check Google Maps for that one.
That’s what we know so far. I’ll update things once the museum opens on October 2nd and/or after my visit if I get tickets in the lottery!